


All in the Subtext

by tfw_cas



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Destiel - Freeform, First Kiss, I think I might be reading too much into it, M/M, Mild Wing Kink, Romeo and Juliet References, Shakespearean subtext, cross-dressing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-24
Updated: 2017-03-24
Packaged: 2018-10-10 05:04:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10429755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tfw_cas/pseuds/tfw_cas
Summary: Castiel Novak accidentally ends up wearing the wrong costume during a high school production of Romeo and Juliet, which provokes a strong reaction from his best friend Dean Winchester.





	

Castiel accosted his brother outside his bedroom door and looked at him accusingly. “Gabriel, have you seen my costume?”

 

“Costume?” The look on Gabriel’s face was all feigned innocence. “I don’t know what you’re talking about Cassie.”

 

“Gabriel!” Castiel was starting to lose his patience, and used his most threatening tone to try to intimidate his trickster of a brother. “You know very well what I am talking about. My costume for the play.”

 

“Oh, that costume. It’s on the back of the kitchen door.”

 

With one last look of annoyance the black haired boy ran downstairs, grabbed the bag from the door and flung himself out of the house to join his best friend Dean, who was waiting patiently for him. Dean stared wide-eyed at him for a moment, and it was definitely not because of his dishevelled appearance; hair sticking up all over the place and tie on backwards.

 

“Oh, er… hey Cas.” The green-eyed boy regained the power of speech and gave his friend a beaming smile. 

 

“Hello Dean.” Castiel smiled back and they fell into step beside each other as they walked to school. They talked excitedly about the play, which was having its first performance this evening as soon as school was finished. This performance was for staff and other students only, but it was being treated as seriously as the ‘proper’ ones.

 

The school day dragged on - well, for Castiel it did anyway. He was practically buzzing by the time it came for them to go to the gym and get ready. There was very little time for the young actors and actresses to get changed into their costumes and as Castiel pulled his out of the bag, he was horrified.  _ Oh god! What the hell is this?  _ He found he was holding a frilly dress, flower crown and ballet slippers instead of the soldier’s uniform he was supposed to be wearing. And, _ is that a pair of angel wings on the back of the dress?  _ He was going to kill Gabriel when he got home; this was their sister Anna’s ballet gear. 

 

He realised that he was either going to have to wear his school clothes or the dress and in a sudden rush of daring, he quickly picked the second option. He knew that most of the other students already thought he was strange anyway and hopefully it would at least get a laugh. He tried to remove the wings from the dress, but they had been sewn on expertly by their mother. They would have to stay.

 

He hid himself beside the stage, not wanting anyone else to see him and he waited for his cue, becoming more nervous as his entrance grew nearer. Eventually, he heard the actress playing his mother say the words ‘O where is Romeo’ and he readied himself to get on the stage after a few more lines. When he came out from behind the curtain, the other actors stared in utter confusion at his appearance. There was a smattering of laughter from some of the students in the audience, which was quickly hushed up by the teachers. 

 

He could see the drama teacher, Ms. Mills, looking at him with a mixture of surprise and humour. At least she wasn’t angry with him. He gave Benny, who was playing Benvolio, an expectant look and waited for him to gather his wits and carry on with the dialogue. The scene continued and, strangely, Castiel felt a kind of exhilaration at being on stage in such a ridiculous costume. It helped  that only Ms. Mills and the other actors and actresses were aware that he should have been wearing something different.

 

When the scene ended, they exited the stage and waited by the curtain while Juliet spoke with her mother and the nurse. Benny turned to him and gently whistled through his teeth. “Castiel, you shoulda warned me about the costume change. Nearly forgot my lines.” He spoke fondly though, without any annoyance, and Castiel was glad of it, smiling bashfully. As Juliet’s scene came to a close, they readied themselves for their next one. Dean was finally going to appear in the play, _ come to think of it, where was Dean?  _ Castiel realised that he hadn’t seen him yet, so he was going to get a big surprise. 

 

They all swaggered onto the stage, with Dean as Mercutio handily arriving just in the nick of time. At the moment his first line was due to be delivered, towards Romeo, he spotted what Castiel was wearing and his brain came to a screeching halt. Castiel bored into his friend with his piercing blue eyes and willed him to carry on, but Dean was transfixed. As they stared into each other’s eyes for that little bit longer than was comfortable, Benny leaned forward and said to Dean, “Your line brother. Get it together.”

 

Dean mentally shook himself before he spoke his line. “Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.” The irony of the fact that his friend was wearing a ballet dress was not lost on him and he tried to think about anything else. Romeo spoke, then it was his turn again. “You are a lover; borrow Cupid’s wings, and soar with them above a common ground.”  _ Seriously?  _ Was Cas wearing those clothes just to mess with him? 

 

Then Cas said something about being enpierced with his shaft and he decided that he was actually in Hell.  _ Focus, godammit. It’s Shakespeare, not some gay love story.  _ For a couple of lines everything was relatively ok, until he had to say, “If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.”  _ Jesus! Maybe this is a gay love story.  _ He said the rest of his lines in a kind of trance, trying not to think about Cas in that dress, wearing  _ goddam _ angel wings, and lines about shafts, pricking and being rough with love.

 

As the play progressed, Dean found he could breathe again, although he could not watch the balcony scene because of the pain it caused him. He knew that it was only acting, but Castiel was kissing Meg, who definitely had the hots for him. Dean did not want to admit it, but he was jealous, even though he had no right to be. They were friends, nothing more, no matter how much Dean wished that were not true. 

 

When Mercutio’s death scene came, Dean tried to look at someone else as he spoke his final words, but he found his eyes were fixed on Castiel.

 

“Help me into some house, Benvolio, 

Or I shall faint. A plague o’ both your houses.

They have made worms meat of me.

I have it, and soundly, too. Your houses!”

 

Everyone except Castiel left the stage then, with Benny carrying Dean due to his mortal wounds, and he watched his friend go with a fond look on his face; knowing that he would not see him again. The thought of that made his heart ache with longing and tears began to prick at his eyes. Castiel gradually noticed that he had been staring at where they had exited for far too long and he started speaking again, delivering his lines about the death of Mercutio with a real passion.

 

As they reached Romeo’s death scene, Castiel tried to inject as much feeling into his dying speech as he could, but even he could tell that compared to the way he had spoken about Mercutio, it fell rather flat. Meg’s delivery of her final speech was much better and the audience were suitably moved. 

 

During the curtain calls, Dean came to stand next to Castiel and they looked at each other shyly through the applause. Benny turned to them, raising his eyebrows.“It’s a good thing Mercutio dies when he does. Else the play would have a very different name.”

 

They both looked at him, but neither of them responded. As the final applause died down and the curtain stayed in place, everyone except Dean and Castiel left the stage. They seemed frozen where they stood. When they realised that they were alone, they tried to speak at the same time. 

 

“Where’d you get the outfit, Cas? I always knew you were an angel.” Dean’s gaze roamed over his friend’s body.

 

“I did not like watching you die.” Castiel’s already deep voice was somehow lower than usual, as the emotion washed over him.

 

“Hey, I’m not actually dead.” Dean pulled his friend into his arms to comfort him. “Anyway, if I was gonna die, you’d rescue me. You’re an angel after all.”

 

Castiel smiled as he moved back slightly, so that he could look into Dean’s beautiful green eyes properly. “Not an angel, but thank you, Dean.”

 

“In my dreams you are.” Dean leaned forward until their mouths were almost touching.  _ Shit. Did I say that out loud? _

 

“You dream about me?” Castiel’s heartbeat became erratic and his breath hitched, as he moved so that their lips were brushing when he spoke. Dean’s answer was lost as they finally came together in a soft, gentle kiss. He groaned into his friend’s mouth and they deepened the kiss, each pulling the other forward until their bodies were flush and their hips were rolling together creating a delicious friction.

 

The kiss went on for who knows how long, until they pulled apart and tried to catch their breath. “Dean.” Castiel ran his hands through his friend’s hair. “I should get changed.”

 

“Don’t you dare, Cas. You look too good in that.” Dean ran his hands over his friend’s body, loving the way he squirmed at his touch. “Especially the wings.” 

  
“Do you think Ms. Mills will let me wear this for every performance?” Now that he had Dean’s approval, he really wanted to. And maybe he wouldn’t kill Gabriel after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to [RidinCastielInTheImpala](http://archiveofourown.org/users/RidinCastielInTheImpala/pseuds/RidinCastielInTheImpala) for being my beta. You're the best.


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